Being underweight, do I want to go into ketosis?

I weigh about 64 kg at 186 cm... I do high-intensity, low-frequency workouts wtih compound exercises, slow speed and I eat a paleo diet with a lots of root-vegetables, sprouts, lots of oil to reach about 3500 Kcal pr. day.

I'm seeing consistent gains and I feel good at around 120 g. carbs / daily (60-80 g. net after subtracting fiber). My bodyfat percentage is no more than 7%. I don't think I'm low enough in carbs to go into ketosis. I suffer from hypoglycemia and go into a non-desirable state, when my blood sugar is low. This still happens at my current diet of about 60-80 g's of net carbs.

My question is: Do I want to restrict my carbs further to go into ketosis? What are the pros and cons?

Last edited by SkinnyViking; 10-06-2012 at 08:44 AM.
Reason: Had more to say

Ketosis is useful for burning fat. At less than 10%, you definitely don't need to bother. It can help fix metabolic issues, but if you have an otherwise healthy metabolism there really aren't any other benefits that I'm aware of .

Au contraire, jfreaksho! Au contraire! Ketosis means you're using fat for fuel instead of glucose/glycogen. That's it. Many bodies -- and BRAINS -- operate far better when burning ketones. That can come from dietary fat, not just body fat. I plan to stay in and around ketosis when I hit my desired body composition by increasing dietary fat. For me, it's about trying to stave off Alzheimer's, which runs in my family, and keeping inflammation at bay.

You could go into ketosis by replacing carb with fat. For most people, eating below 50g carb/day is sufficient, provided you don't overdo protein, but that's an average - your limit may be greater or lesser than 50. Ketosis - once you are adapted - provides a very steady energy level, with never a bonk or low energy episode.

When you eat enough carb to stay out of ketosis, you are dependent on your glucose/glycogen fuel tank: typically about 400g in the muscles and another 100g in the liver or (500g*4kcal/g) = 2,000 kcal of energy.

If gaining weight is your goal, caloric intake will determine that for you.

You can still gain weight while in ketosis. Just because you are using fat for rules does't mean that if you eat more fat than your body can use, it won't be put on as weight. So really, you can approach this either way.

If gaining weight is your goal, caloric intake will determine that for you.

You can still gain weight while in ketosis. Just because you are using fat for rules does't mean that if you eat more fat than your body can use, it won't be put on as weight. So really, you can approach this either way.